Category: High Points

WythevilleVirginiaJuly  2011 We approach Wytheville from the east, after having climbed Mount Rogers, the high point of Virginia.  Huzzah! As you see, Wytheville, Virginia, shows its true colors, what with its diversity water tower.  (Don’t tell them.) On second thought, do tell them.

Black MesaOklahomaMarch  2013 We sit on the sturdy stone bench several feet from the native granite obelisk, the marker indicating that this is the highest land point in the state of Oklahoma.  How thoughtful of the Boy Scouts to have built this comfortable sitting area, this bench.  It’s lunch time and the air is clear… Continue reading Hooker

Spruce KnobWest VirginiaMay  2014 We are hiking to the peak of Spruce Knob, the summit of West Virginia.  What better song for us to be singing than If You Wanna Be Happy by Jimmy Soul.  As the music winds down, Rod and Diane tell us about the monkey balls. They were vacationing in Manuel Antonio… Continue reading Monkey Balls II

Hoosier HillIndianaMarch  2012 Girding our loins for the ascent from the parking lot to the summit of Hoosier Hill — this consists of putting on our jackets, which obviously doesn’t actually have much to do with loin-girding — we step from the car, trying not to trip on the monkey balls.  Lisa comments, “Hmm, smells… Continue reading Monkey Balls I

Humphreys PeakArizonaJuly  2013 Throughout the day, the only wildlife we see are chickaree squirrels, a couple of woodpeckers and other birds, and herds of hikers.  Grandma, back in the Ranger District office on the telephone, warned us to be careful of the ticks and snakes.  No need.  There are none.  What we do see other… Continue reading Gnats

Britton HillFloridaNovember  2013 Visit Lakewood Park in Florida.  We do when we summit the Sunshine State, by climbing to its high point at 345 feet.  We contemplate and celebrate this thrill, and we wander around in the open, grassy area of the park.  At the far end of the picnic area, we see this sign.… Continue reading Throw This Column Away

Baxter State ParkMaineAugust  2012 We cross the Park boundary and continue to wind through the woods, passing the Visitors Center and pulling up at the southern entrance, the Togue Pond Gatehouse.  And now we sit.  Our first significant Maine traffic jam.  There are five cars in front of us.  What an enormous crowd, actually taking… Continue reading Togue Pond Gatehouse

Sassafras MountainSouth CarolinaMay  2013 A Highpointers bench has been placed here at the top of Sassafras Mountain, the high point of South Carolina, perfect for Lisa to lie down and take a nap, which she does. It’s a thing.  Whenever you get to the top, or to water, or to a broad flat rock on… Continue reading Black Throated Green

Caesars Head State ParkSouth CarolinaJune  2001 Stepping off the Appalachian Trail at the Fork Ridge Trailhead after summiting Clingmans Dome, we decide to take a drive to the place where 99% of the people who visit Clingmans Dome begin their summit hike.  This “trailhead” is three and a half miles to the end of the… Continue reading The Rescue

OklahomaMarch  2013 This area of the country has long been a hot spot for geologists and paleontologists who like to get down.  Y’know, they dig for remains of dinosaurs that date back to the Jurassic and Triassic periods, as long ago as 245 million years, give or take twenty minutes.  More than 18 tons of… Continue reading Paleontologists Get Down